


Griddle and the Beast

by Dr_Skelebone



Category: Gideon the Ninth - Tamsyn Muir, The Locked Tomb Trilogy | Gideon the Ninth Series - Tamsyn Muir
Genre: Alternate Universe - Beauty and the Beast, F/F, Harrow legally cannot be well-adjusted in any universe, warning - suicidal thoughts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-03
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:53:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22092874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dr_Skelebone/pseuds/Dr_Skelebone
Summary: Local butch kidnapped by small, fluffy gremlin.
Relationships: Gideon Nav/Harrowhark Nonagesimus
Comments: 40
Kudos: 193





	1. Chapter 1

It wasn’t until the hail began pelting her in the face that Gideon Nav was forced to admit she fucked up. The sheeting rain and howling wind were, admittedly, less than ideal, but Gideon was confident she could push through it. But when the storm turned bruising, she decided it was time to seek shelter.

This left her with two options: find somewhere slightly less exposed to wait out the storm, or the much more sensible alternative of heading back to the village and her nice, warm bed. Of course, the second option was completely out of the question. Like hell she was going to go crawling back to Aiglamene mere hours after the older woman had explicitly warned her not to go.

“There’s a storm coming,” Aiglamene had said.

“Pfft, nah. Sky looks fine, I can get there before it hits,” Gideon had replied, with totally unwarranted confidence.

No, going back would be condemning herself to about a month of ‘I told you so’s. With that option eliminated, she pressed on.

The damn trip was only supposed to take half a day; just a straight shot through the woods from the village of Drearburh to the nearby town of Canaan. She’d wanted to meet Camilla’s hot new girlfriend ever since she’d paid Gideon a visit with a poorly disguised hickey on her neck. Coronabeth. The name alone sounded glamorous. Considering she was from one of the major necro families, she probably was.

Gideon’s musings were interrupted by an unexpected fork in the path. The new offshoot of dirt road was partially concealed by a bush, and too narrow for traffic between towns. Did someone live out here? Bolstered by the thought of a roof over her head, Gideon picked up the pace, jogging down the winding path until she reached its end.

“Holy shit.” Looming over her was probably the biggest building Gideon had ever seen in her life. It was _definitely_ the creepiest building Gideon had ever seen in her life. Viewed through the rain and hail, the dark stone and absence of life made it appear more like the shadow of a mansion than a real one, but the black-stained wood door felt solid under Gideon’s hand anyway. The door was twice her height and decorated with a large metal skull holding a ring with which to knock, but it was also unlocked, which was enough to tempt Gideon inside. If she had a better sense of self-preservation, she wouldn’t have been caught out here to begin with, so she wasn’t about to be spooked off now.

The interior only convinced her further that this place was long abandoned, the air inside felt like 30% cobweb and 50% dust. It did possess a fireplace however, so as far as Gideon was concerned it was the best place in the world. It took a bit of effort to get the fire going, but the feeling slowly returning to her sodden limbs made it all worthwhile. Confident she was alone, Gideon stripped down to her underwear and laid her drenched clothes in front of the fire to dry, alongside her pack. Her beloved two-hander she placed down far more gently, keeping it in her line of sight as she launched into a warming series of push-ups.

She had only gotten to 22 before a growl sounded out from somewhere nearby, erasing the meagre warmth she had worked up as her blood turned to ice.

“Fuck,” Gideon breathed out, slowly rising to her feet as she grabbed her sword. Still crouched, she glanced around, trying to find the source of the growl. Half-naked, heart pounding and only a sword between her and whatever lurked in the darkness, Gideon realised she had fucked up once again.

The second she stood up fully, a black blur came leaping out of the shadows with a snarl, too fast for her to tell what it was, other than angry. Gideon sidestepped out of the way just in time, and the creature landed behind her before whirling around to face her again, baring its teeth in rage.

Now that it had slowed down, Gideon could get a good look at her assailant. The creature was covered in scruffy, short black fur, thicker along the spine and joints and finer on the face. The fur looked more like hair at the top of its head, longer than the rest of the fur and choppy, as if it had been clumsily cut. A pair of large, pointed ears peaked out from under the hair on the sides of its head, while slender horns poked through on top. The muzzle, tail, sharp teeth and claws gave the beast a feline vibe, but the overall body structure, and the way it appeared to be sizing Gideon up seemed… human. Overall image: small furry goblin thing.

“Easy there…” Gideon tried to keep her voice as calm as possible. She held up her free hand in what she hoped was a placating manner. “I’m not gonna hurt you.”

Apparently, this was not what the creature wanted to hear. It lunged again, lightning-fast, lashing out with deadly claws that… only nicked her arm? The jump had left the beast vulnerable, it would be very easy for Gideon to run it through. Any sane person would take the opportunity and put an end to this threat. Gideon Nav, however, did not do this. As the turned for a third strike, Gideon lowered her sword. This seemed to give her opponent pause, it stopped and stared incredulously at her with pitch-black eyes. Such an intelligent response confirmed Gideon’s theory: this was no animal.

“You’re not actually trying to kill me, are you?” At the creature’s flinch, Gideon kept talking. “You’re too fast, I couldn’t see you swiping at me. You could’ve ripped my damn arm off. But you didn’t.” No response. “I know you’re not some dumb animal, and I’m not gonna fight you.”

At Gideon’s declaration, the creature let out a frustrated snarl and dropped the quadrupedal charade to drag its hands down its face. To Gideon’s surprise, a fully articulate voice sounded out from behind the hands. “Oh, for _fuck’s sake._ ”

Gideon nearly fell over. “You can talk?” She wrapped her arms around her chest, suddenly very aware of her state of undress. Not that she was embarrassed, she worked damn hard to look this good. Her torso was beautifully chiseled, her arms were perfection itself, her legs were also there. Still, slightly awkward for an introduction.

The hands dropped from the beast’s face. “Yes, moron, I can talk. But apparently _you_ can’t fight. Why carry that bloody great sword around if you can’t even use it to save your life?” The beast turned to the side, muttering under their breath. “What does a girl have to do to get stabbed, honestly…” She looked even more humanoid then before as she paced around, arms crossed and glaring at Gideon as if she had committed some great atrocity by not murdering her.

“Ok, first of all, I’m amazing with that sword, so jot that down,” Gideon objected, far more insulted by that than the moron comment. “Second of all, why the _absolute fuck_ do you want me to attack you?”

The beast sighed, fury exhausted. “Because I’m cursed.”

“You’re what now?”

“Cursed. I cannot leave this place, and I cannot die by my own hand. Everything I do just heals. It has to be someone else that kills me, and because I can’t leave the property, I need them to come to me.” All of this was delivered with about as much emotion as reading off a shopping list, which only disturbed Gideon more.

 _What the fuck. What the fucking fuck._ It took Gideon a few seconds to push past the shock and ask, “why do you want to die?”

The beast rolled her eyes before fixing them on Gideon’s, her expression flat and tired. “Do I look like someone who is enjoying life? I am stuck in this dusty old ruin with nothing but spiders and the occasional rodent, and I don’t feel like sticking around long enough to find out if I can die from old age.” Gideon felt her chest contract at these words, a more miserable life she’d never imagined.

“But…” Gideon scrambled for a shred of optimism. “Curses can be broken right? Isn’t that how that works? Who the hell did this to you anyway? What could deserve _this?_ ” Gideon’s voice verged on hysterical near the end, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. This was just… fucked.

The beast tensed, then her shoulders slumped. She no longer held Gideon’s gaze. “It is… impossible. There is no breaking this curse for me. I don’t remember who did this, it was far too long ago. As for why…” She shrugged. “I exist. That is my crime.” Gideon opened her mouth but was cut off before the words ‘that’s bullshit’ could leave her lips. “It doesn’t matter anyway. What does matter is this: will you kill me?” She punctuated her question by opening her arms, palms turned towards Gideon in askance.

Gideon shivered, and not just from cold. She gulped. “I…” She already knew the answer. The tip of her sword clinked against the floor as she lowered it completely. “I can’t. I can’t kill you.” The resigned look on the beast’s face was somehow worse than anger. She turned away, unable to look at her anymore. “I- I can leave. If you want. I get it if you don’t want me here.” As she spoke, Gideon grabbed her pack, shifting it aside to reach her clothes. Upon being set back down, a note she didn’t recognise fell out of the top of it.

The beast knelt and picked up the note, holding it up to her face while squinting. The top of it was slightly water-stained, and apparently hard to read. “G… Griddle?”

“Eh, close enough. I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.” Gideon grinned cheekily, desperate to lighten the mood. All she received in return was narrow-eyed stare.

“… What use does a beast have for a name?”

 _Well that’s just unhelpful_. “Uh, so people can talk to her without it being weird?”

The Beast ignored her and returned her attention to the note. “If you’re reading this, I told you so. -Aiglamene.”

 _Oh, you arse_ , Gideon thought. She should have known there was no escaping Aiglamene’s lecture, the woman had a sixth sense for when Gideon did something stupid.

The Beast gave Gideon an odd look. “You have friends? Family?”

“Um.” Well this was awkward. “Friends, yes. Family, no.” Something about this exchange was making Gideon nervous.

“I see. People who care about you. Who would notice your absence.” The hairs on the back of Gideon’s neck stood up. “Who would kill a monster to rescue you…”

 _Oh fuck no_. Gideon turned to the door, clothes be damned, but before she could take a single step, about six skeletons marched out of the shadows and barred her exit. “What the FUCK?” Gideon raised her sword, ready to cut though bone to escape, but failed to notice the Beast creeping up behind her. A sharp blow to the back of the head sent her falling to the ground. The last thing she saw before passing out was the Beast, flanked by skeletons and kneeling at her side. Her expression was hard to read, Gideon swore there was a hint of remorse in there.

“Sorry, Griddle.”

Yeah, she’d definitely fucked up.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An awkward dinner scene.

Gideon awoke with a mild sting in her arm and a very not-mild headache. On the plus side, she was warm and lying on the softest surface she’d ever felt. Opening her eyes revealed she was lying in an enormous four-poster and absolutely swaddled in blankets. The bedframe was dark wood, and the sheets and other drapery were pitch black. That theme continued throughout the room she was in, nothing but black and very dark grey. On the bedside table to her right sat a glass of water, which made her realise how thirsty she was.

Reluctantly, Gideon pushed the blankets off her, flinching a little at the cold air on her skin. She was still in her underwear, same as before, but her left arm now sported a bandage over the claw marks, and a strange bone bracelet wrapped tight around her wrist. She tugged at her new unwanted accessory, but it refused to budge. Smacking it against the table only jarred her wrist uncomfortably and trying to bite though it just made her mouth even drier. Gideon grumbled to herself and snatched the glass of water, downing it in two gulps.

Ignoring the bracelet for now, she looked around the rest of the room. It was a pretty decent size, with a dresser, mirror, desk and chair. Surprisingly, her sword lay on the desk and her pack beneath it. To top it off, her clothes were clean and folded on the chair. The only things missing were her jacket and boots, the latter replaced with a fuzzy pair of grey slippers. With all this, it would be simple for Gideon to simply get dressed and leave.

 _Yeah, nah._ No way in hell it was going to be that easy. Still, no sense in waiting around for something to happen. Gideon switched out her bandeau and undies for the spares in her pack, then put her shirt, pants and socks back on. The old-man slippers were a little big, but otherwise soft and warm. Looking in the mirror, Gideon took a moment to adjust her bright red hair from bird’s nest to charmingly disheveled. _Oh yeah, still hot as fuck._

A knock at the door made Gideon jump, before she remembered there was only one person it could be. “Come in.” She had _questions_ for her captor.

The Beast looked Gideon up and down as she entered, lingering on her arm. “You’re up. Good.” She looked tense and uncomfortable, which frankly served her right. Aside from that, she also looked less… feral than earlier. Her fur looked less wild and her claws were retracted.

There was a pause before Gideon answered, having too many questions to settle. Eventually, she blurted out, “where’s my other clothes?”

“By the fire. They’ll be dry soon enough. In the meantime, dinner’s ready.” Dinner. Good, that meant she hadn’t been out more than a couple of hours.

Gideon was quite hungry. But Gideon was also somewhat sore about the whole kidnapping thing. She folded her arms. “And if I don’t want it?”

The Beast’s eye twitched slightly, which was satisfying. “Then I’ll keeping bringing you food until you do. I doubt you’re willing to starve to death just to spite me.”

Unfortunately, she was right. “Fine,” Gideon ground out. “But I want some answers.”

“Very well.” The Beast’s shoulder’s relaxed minutely, as if she’d been expecting far more resistance. “Follow me, then,” she said, lifting her arm to gesture out the door. The fur on her fingers looked irregular in length, and Gideon could faintly smell burnt hair.  
Gideon followed her, grumpily. The bedroom door led out into a hallway with five doors in total, like a very large and depressing hotel. The turn at the end of it led down a flight of stairs and into a massive room with a massive dining table. This room alone could fit an entire house in it, and the table was so long you’d need to shout to hear each other at each end. A fireplace roared near one end, and Gideon was relieved to see her jacket and boots in front of it. The only other source of light in the room came from the candelabra set between two full plates placed across from each other at the fireplace end of the table.

Gideon sat down, eager to eat. Her meal was a large slab of overcooked meat alongside some vegetables, while the Beast’s wasn’t even cooked at all. Watching her dining companion tear into bloodied flesh, Gideon got the impression she didn’t cook much. Or ever. Oh, well. It was hardly the worst meal Gideon had ever had. Hell, probably not even the worst company.

The Beast finished well before her, so she spent some time picking her teeth with a claw and watching Gideon eat. Her brow furrowed the longer she watched. When Gideon was finally done, the Beast said, “it’s terrible, isn’t it?”

 _Oh crap._ How the hell was she meant to answer that? “Uhmm…” _Fucking nailed it, good work._

“That’s a yes then.”

 _Fuck, fuck, abort!_ “So, about those questions I had…” The Beast smirked at her but remained silent. “Let’s start with this thing.” Gideon raised her arm so that the bone bracelet was at the Beast’s eye level.

“That would be the reason you can’t just walk out of here. It is tied to by curse, so the only way to leave is through my death, which will break the curse. Or by me removing it, but the former is far more likely.” Without waiting for a response, the Beast continued, looking strangely proud. “There was an… accident a while ago. One of my fingers got chopped off entirely.” She raised a hand, fingers very much intact. “It grew back, of course. But I found myself with access to a separate piece of my own bone. Naturally I tested it against the curse; it can’t leave the property any more than I can.”

 _Hang on._ “This is your bone?!” Gideon flapped her arm about like it was on fire. _Why does this just keep getting WEIRDER?_

The Beast rolled her eyes. “Oh, calm down. All the bones around here belonged to someone once,” she said, as if that were even remotely comforting. Still, Gideon did stop flailing, if only because it was starting to hurt her wrist.

“So… You’re a necromancer.”

“Oh, you noticed.”

“Which- hey.” Gideon glared at the Beast. _Rude._ “Which of the eight houses are you from?”

The Beast gave her a look she couldn’t quite decipher. “… eight?”

“Well, yeah. Point taken. First is long gone.” The House of the First had vanished hundreds of years ago, but it wasn’t uncommon for people to refer to ‘the eight houses’ as if they were still there. “Ok then, which of the _seven_ remaining houses are you from?”

The weird look persisted, now with a slightly cocked head. “…What makes you think I’m from one of them?”

“I… huh?” Gideon had never heard of a necromancer that hadn’t at least allied itself with one of the houses, if they weren’t born into it. Beast or not, most houses would have been eager to snap up a competent necro. Unless they’d never heard of them. “How long have you been cursed again?”

“Eight years,” Harrow replied. “It happened when I was nine.”

Huh. Despite the way she talked, she was younger than Gideon, if only by a year. “That’s… rough. Doing that to a kid, I mean. What about everyone else? You weren’t living here alone, right?”

The Beast’s shoulders stiffened. It occurred to Gideon then that maybe the event that ruined her life and condemned her to eternal misery might be something of a sore subject. Even so, the Beast collected herself and spoke.

“We hadn’t been able to afford outside help for some time, so it was just my family here on the day. They’re dead now.” The Beast dropped her gaze, staring dully at her empty plate. “I suspect I was only spared because of my age,” she said, then snorted softly. “Some demented sense of honour, making them think this is kinder than death.”

“So… It wasn’t even you. Your family pissed someone off, and you got the worst of it.”

“In a nutshell, yes.”

 _Well, shit. What do you even SAY to that?_ Gideon fidgeted in her seat, taking a sudden interest in the flickering fireplace as she wracked her mind for something to say that wouldn’t sound stupid.  
The Beast apparently took pity on her captive, standing up and gesturing for Gideon to do the same. “It’s getting late. Grab your things, I’ll show you back to your room.” She noticed Gideon’s eyes flick to their plates. “Don’t worry about those, the skeletons will take care of them.”

Gideon obeyed, suddenly exhausted. Today had been… a lot. She fell into step beside the Beast, content to walk back in silence.

The Beast, however, was not. “Where were you going, anyway?” she said, attempting to restart the conversation.

“Canaan. I’ve got some friends there, thought I’d visit. It’s not far from Drearburh, only about half a day or so.”

The Beast’s ears perked up, and Gideon could swear she saw her fur fluff up a little. “You come from Drearburh?” There was a new, strange tension to the conversation that Gideon didn’t understand.

“Yeah. You heard of it?”

“… A little. I’ve never been there myself.”

“Well, you’re not missing much. It used to be a proper village, but a plague wiped out all the kids one night, around 200 of them.” Gideon had heard this story many times, given her special status as the sole survivor. “No one knows how I lived, but it sure as hell didn’t make people trust me. Aiglamene was the only one stubborn enough to tell them they were being stupid and that I was literally just a baby.” Gideon never said it, but she was pretty sure she’d be dead if Aiglamene hadn’t stuck up for her. And also raised her. She owed that woman a lot. “Everyone started leaving after that. Less than 30 people left in Drearburh now, all old as balls. Except me. And Ortus, I guess, but he lives like he’s an old man already.” Gideon felt a twinge of guilt making fun or Ortus; he was a nice enough guy, but damn he was boring.

The Beast had maintained a guarded expression throughout Gideon’s story, but her tail lashed about behind her, occasionally slapping against Gideon’s legs. Something about Drearburh bothered her, something she clearly did not want to talk about. Gideon decided not to ask, at least, not yet. It wasn’t as if she didn’t have time.

They arrived in front of Gideon’s door and stopped, the Beast Gesturing to it. “This room is yours. You are free to explore the property as you like, any places you’re not allowed in will be locked.” She turned and pointed at the door directly across the hall. “This room is mine. It will be locked when I’m not there, but feel free to knock if you need anything.” Finally, she pointed at the door at the end of the hall. It looked slightly larger than the others. “The master bedroom is off limits,” she said with a harder tone than before. “And… I think that’s all for now.” Her tail flicked behind her and her ears tilted back, looking awkward now that there was nothing left to say. Eventually, she settled on “good night.” The Beast turned to her door.

“Wait,” Gideon blurted, having absolutely nothing to add but the need to make things less uncomfortable. The Beast obligingly waited, facing her once more. “Uh…” _Come on, Nav. Use your words._ “How about I help with dinner tomorrow? You can catch, I can cook.” Her hand rose to the back of her neck as she grinned sheepishly.

One corner of the Beast’s lips twitched, and her eyes looked a little less tired. “That sounds… good. Good night, Griddle.”

After the Beast had entered her room and shut the door, Gideon remained fixed to the spot, smile still plastered on her face. Cheering the Beast up, even just a little, made Gideon’s heart feel so much lighter.

Perhaps being stuck here wouldn’t be so bad.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day, after breakfast, Gideon made a suggestion.

“Hey,” Gideon started, getting the Beast’s attention. “You wanna, uh, show me around the place?” An awkward request for one’s captor, but Gideon didn’t particularly want to wander around this place alone all day. That would just be boring.

The Beast’s eyes were slightly wider than usual as she replied, “I… Sure.” At least Gideon wasn’t the only one feeling weird about all this.

With no further discussion, they exited the dining hall. The silence was oppressive, it seemed neither of them knew how to small-talk. Gideon could ask more questions, but the only things she knew about the Beast were extremely depressing, and that wasn’t the kind of mood she wanted to start the day with. So instead, she simply kept walking, the quiet making her itch.

Their first stop turned out to be the library. Gideon had gotten used to the massive rooms in this place, but they were usually empty and covered in dust. This room was packed with enough bookshelves to put public libraries to shame, all of which were perfectly maintained. She could think of a couple of nerds who would _love_ this place.

“The library holds all the necromantic knowledge my family has collected over many generations, as well as some history books, and even some horticultural guides, which turned out to be invaluable.”

“Cool.” Gideon nodded as if she’d ever read any of those. “You got any books for fun?”

“Fun?” the Beast asked with a look of confusion that alarmed Gideon greatly.

“Please tell me you know what fun is.”

The Beast fixed her with a look that would cause a weaker woman to shrivel into dust. “I know what it _is_ , Griddle. I’m asking what kind of books you mean.”

 _Oh thank fuck_. “Uh, fiction, I guess? Something with a story?” Gideon could hardly claim to be much of a reader, but it was the only thing to do in Drearburh aside from training.

“No,” the Beast replied, shaking her head. “Nothing like that. You are welcome to read what I do have, however. I’ve read every book here at least once.” With that, she exited the room, with Gideon at her heels.

Their next stop was the ballroom, but the Beast didn’t bother to enter it, simply holding one of the enormous doors open and gesturing inside.

“There’s little to see in the ballroom, it hasn’t been used in many years, certainly not in my lifetime.” The Beast shut the door again and kept walking.

The ballroom, through barely seen, confirmed to Gideon that this family must have been important once, as well as rich. But it seems they were in decline well before the curse, for reasons unknown.

The sun distracted her from that line of thought as the Beast led them out into the courtyard. Looking at the mansion on a sunny day made it look a lot less terrifying than it did during yesterday’s storm. It was still dark and creepy and entirely too pointy, but at least it didn’t look like something out of a nightmare.

The courtyard, by comparison, looked like something out of an oil painting, beautifully smothered by nature. Grass grew from the gaps in the cobblestone up to Gideon’s knees, brushing against her as she followed the Beast.

Initially, Gideon was surprised to see a well-maintained vegetable garden amidst all the wild growth, but considering their dinner last night, it made sense. The crops were currently being tended to by several skeletons, who ignored Gideon and the Beast as they passed. This must be what the Beast meant about those horticultural guides.

On the other side of the veggie patch were a bunch of fruit trees with a stone bench in the middle of them. Gideon grabbed two peaches off a tree and tossed one to the Beast, then flopped onto the bench to eat hers.  
“Sho,” Gideon started before remembering to swallow. “Your skeletons grow all this stuff?”

The Beast sat next to her, far more elegantly than Gideon. There was something very entertaining about seeing someone who could tear her to pieces in half a second sit so primly, back straight and ankles crossed. There was no way to class up her eating though, those teeth were made to tear.

Licking the peach juice off her lips, the Beast answered Gideon’s question. “Yes. As long as I know what commands to give them, they will carry them out, whether I’m there or not. It takes up some of my energy, but nothing noticeable.”  
“Have you ever tried to see how many skeletons you can make at once?”

“I can’t say I have; my focus was always on complexity and endurance rather than sheer numbers. Why do you ask?”

Gideon shrugged. “I dunno. It’s the first thing I’d do.”

The Beast’s lips quirked in amusement. “The first thing you’d do as a necromancer is summon skeletons until you pass out?”

“Yep.”

“You’d make a terrible necromancer.”

“Probably,” Gideon agreed, her grin not faltering in the slightest. “I’ll stick with the sword.” She made some swinging motions with her peach-free hand as she spoke.

The Beast’s eyes followed her movements. “You mentioned that Drearburh was mostly full of the elderly. Who taught you the sword?”

“Aiglamene. She’s a tough teacher, but honest. She’ll tell you when you’ve fucked up, but also when you’ve done good.” Gideon would never admit how much she craved that: “good work, Nav”, from her mentor. Although, her reprimands had their entertainment value; “you couldn’t spell ‘parry’ if I shoved the letters up your arse” did a lot to lessen the sting of failure. “Still, it’s been ages since I could actually fight someone, she’s too old for that shit.”

The Beast hummed thoughtfully, gaze drifting off to a spot behind Gideon’s shoulder. In the light of day, Gideon could distinguish between the irises and pupils, the latter of which were slightly taller than they were wide. Even without the animalistic traits, they really were the most unusual eyes; so dark and intense and _looking right at her oh fuck-_

Having been caught staring, Gideon could only give sheepish chuckle and try to brush it off. “Penny for your thoughts?”

The Beast let Gideon squirm under her gaze a little more before replying. “I had an idea that could benefit both of us.” She dug a claw into the peach she was eating, flicking the pit out before chomping down the rest of it. “Bring your sword to the ballroom and you’ll see what I have in mind.” With that, she stood and sauntered off back towards the mansion.

Well. With an invitation like that, how could Gideon refuse? She wolfed down the last of the fruit, and as soon as she was out of the Beast’s potential view, she bolted back to her room, taking the steps three at a time. Gideon Nav was going to get to hit something and she was very excited about it.

She slowed to a walk before she reached the ballroom, giving herself a few seconds to catch her breath and not look quite so childishly eager. She strolled into the room as casually as she could muster.

She was met with the Beast holding two handfuls of bone chips, which were immediately tossed to the floor in an arc in front of her. Three chips sprouted three skeletons, the rest of them lying in wait. The skeletons had bone swords, which made Gideon very happy.

The Beast smirked, showing her teeth. “I hope you perform better than last night, or this might be rough for you.”

_Oh god, it’s too easy. Don’t say it, don’t FUCKING say it._

Heroically biting back a: “that’s what she said,” Gideon raised her sword. “Pretty sure I’m up for it.” _Hehe. Up for it._

One of the skeletons lunged for her; a clumsy, obvious strike that Gideon blocked with ease, before kicking a leg out from under it and bringing her blade down on its spine. As that skeleton hit the ground in pieces, another surged forward to take its place. This one moved faster, keeping itself low to defend its legs and striking at Gideon’s own. She flipped her sword down to block it and swung back up, decapitating the skeleton hard enough to send its head flying in a graceful arc across the room. The third skeleton was dispatched just as easily as the others.

This continued on for a while, every time Gideon slew a skeleton another rose from the bone fragments on the floor. They got progressively smarter and harder to kill, and they no longer attacked her one at a time. Soon she was fending off five at once, sweat dripping her face. Her cheeks were starting to ache from the savage, feral grin she’d developed.

After a downright beautiful spinning move that took out three skeletons at once, Gideon called out to the Beast. “I thought you said you were gonna make this hard? You’re not holding out on me, are you?”

The only response she received was a quiet huff of breath that might have been the beginnings of a laugh, before the five skeletons before her suddenly became twenty.

_Well. Shit._

Gideon put up a valiant effort, but she couldn’t compete with the sheer numbers the Beast was throwing at her. Not all of them bore swords, most were simply content to grab at Gideon’s clothes, her limbs, her blade, anything that would hinder her. By her own reckoning, she lasted longer than most would, but there was only one way this fight would end: her being pinned to the ground by skeletons.

As Gideon lay there panting, the Beast approached, looming over her with a truly impressive level of smugness, considering the blood-soaked fur around her nose. The skeletons let Gideon go and shrunk back into shards.

“I do hope this isn’t too easy for you, Griddle.”

Gideon laughed breathlessly. “Yeah, well. You seem a little worn out, so I’m willing to call it a draw if you are.”

“How generous of you.”

“I’m a giver.”

The Beast extended a hand, which Gideon took, before both of them remembered their considerable difference in size. It ended with Gideon mostly hauling herself to her feet while awkwardly holding the Beast’s hand, the fur on it slightly damp with blood sweat. It felt surprisingly warm, considering Gideon was already overheated to begin with. Suspecting she had lingered too long, Gideon released the hand and pulled her arm back.

“So.” Gideon stretched her arms over her head as she talked. “We’re doing that again, right?” The smile had not left her face, even in defeat.

“Now that I know you’re not as incompetent as you initially appeared, I’ll have to insist on it.” Those pitch-black eyes were alight with the same exhilaration Gideon felt herself. Despite her cool demeanor, The Beast had enjoyed this as much as Gideon.

“Hah! Next time I’ll show you just how competent I can be!”

The mood was light and companionable as they left the room. The rest of the day was far less eventful, mostly bumming around until dinner, where Gideon got to show off her cooking skills. The Beast admitted it was the best meal she’d had in years, which wasn’t saying much, but Gideon enjoyed the praise regardless.

Gideon was learning a lot about her mysterious host, and her curiosity was only growing stronger. Leaving suddenly seemed to be far less of a priority than expected, the Beast was simply too intriguing to ignore.

That night, Gideon dreamt of gleaming black eyes and sword-fighting skeletons.


	4. Chapter 4

They settled into something of a routine over the next few days. The two constants of their days were mealtimes and skeleton fighting, but they tended to spend the time between together as well. On gloomy days Gideon would work out in the library while chatting with the Beast, who’d curl up in a chair and read. Nicer days saw them outside, either wandering the grounds or simply relaxing under a tree.

Today was one of those nice days, so the Beast led Gideon around the perimeter of the property. It was bizarre seeing the Beast’s fur flatten against her arm when she drew too close to the invisible barrier, since Gideon herself felt nothing when she stuck her hand through. As long as she kept her Beast-bone bracelet inside the barrier, she could walk freely on the other side. Not that she actually did, though. No need to rub her host’s captivity in her face.

Eventually, Gideon noticed a stone structure jutting out of the ground, covered in moss and surrounded by shrubbery. Engraved above the narrow entrance was a skull with a missing jaw, a symbol she had seen quite a few times in this place. The forehead was obscured by moss, but there looked to be something carved into it. Curious, she pointed at the structure. “What’s that?”

The Beast stopped walking and glanced over. “That’s the crypt. The bones of my ancestors lie in there. Most of them, anyway. You have to be very exceptional to have your bones entirely untouched.”

 _Creepy._ “You use your dead relative’s bones for necro stuff?”

The Beast arched an eyebrow and the bracelet on Gideon’s wrist shuddered, which was a weird sensation. “I’ve already used my own bones for necro stuff, this really shouldn’t surprise you. Besides, we don’t use all of them. All the skeletons in there are mostly, if not entirely, intact.”

Gideon flapped her arm for a few seconds, trying to shake off the creepy feeling on her wrist. “So what’d they do? The ones that are intact?”

“Hmm. The one I remember is the most recent: Matthias Nonius. Not a necromancer, but a phenomenal swordsman. His bones and his rapier are both preserved out of respect.”

Ah, sword talk. Something Gideon understood. “Rapier, huh? Was he a cavalier?”

The Beast blinked, momentarily stunned. “Yes. Have you heard of him?” she asked, sounding oddly shocked at the possibility.

“Nah, I just know that cavaliers use rapiers.” Gideon could think of no other reason to wield a metal toothpick in place of a real sword. “I wanted to be one as a kid until I learned that. And that they’re basically necro babysitters.”

“That must have been devastating,” said the necromancer dryly.

“It was,” Gideon responded, affecting a suitably heartbroken expression. “Either way, I only know one necromancer besides you, and he’s already got a cav. So, unless you’re in the market, I’m out of luck.”

The Beast hummed thoughtfully, her lips curling into a smirk. “I don’t know about that. Maybe if you can actually beat me in one of our fights, I’ll consider it.”

“Are you asking me to kick your butt? Cause it sounds like you’re asking me to kick your butt.”

“You’re welcome to try.” The Beast’s tone was cool, but her tail lashed behind her excitedly. She was good at keeping her voice and expressions under control, but her ears and tail always gave her away. It was kind of adorable.

“Weeeell, it is about that time.” Gideon bounced slightly as she stepped in front of the Beast, already itching for a fight. She was never one to pass up the opportunity to swing her sword around, but actually being challenged made her downright giddy.

The Beast’s hand rose to cover her mouth, but Gideon heard the quiet chuckle anyway, followed by a quick clearing of the throat. “Go on then, get your sword.”

Gideon took off at a run, no longer embarrassed about her enthusiasm now that she knew it was mutual. She kept up the pace all the way to her room, then back down to the ballroom, where the Beast waited behind the bone chips scattered on the floor. Three skeletons rose up and waited, a nice warmup before the action.

Gideon drew her blade, lunging toward the skeletons as usual. However, just as she got close enough to strike, she dropped her blade and redirected toward the Beast herself. Her opponent was quick in both body and mind, certainly quicker than Gideon, but sheer surprise kept her rooted to the spot. Gideon tackled the Beast to the floor, rolling so that she was on the bottom during the landing, then on top immediately after. She straddled the Beast’s hips and pinned her thin wrists above her head. Pressed so close, the Beast felt like a warm, fur covered skeleton; scrawny and utterly helpless before the might of Gideon’s godlike biceps.

Gideon grinned smugly. “Give up yet?”

The Beast growled and rolled them with unexpected strength, forcing Gideon to struggle for her position on top. Still, Gideon was by far the stronger fighter, so naturally she won the high ground with her shit-eating grin intact and a minimal amount of sweat. She let out a huff of satisfied laughter.

Instead of anger, the Beast responded with a grin of her own; a savage display of teeth that transformed her from small, fuzzy companion to dangerous predator. It was jarring enough to snap Gideon out of her victorious haze and make her notice their surroundings. Looking at the bone chips all around them, Gideon realised they hadn’t rolled here by chance, and that her opponent’s goal wasn’t to pin her down. Blood dripped from the Beast’s nose, and Gideon’s eyes went wide.

An enormous skeletal hand grabbed her waist and lifted her off the Beast and into the air. The construct was a giant mass bone, no longer qualifying as humanoid. Everything about it was too much: it had four arms, double the ribs of any normal creature, and various other protrusions Gideon couldn’t even identify. The monstrous looking skull was as big as Gideon’s torso, but still looked small on its body. However, the thing that caught her attention the most was the upper two arms, which had long sword-like structures instead of forearms coming out of the elbows. This thing was a total abomination and Gideon had never been so excited in her life.

_I wanna fight it._

Decision made, Gideon locked her legs around the construct’s wrist and twisted, popping the hand right off. She hit the floor hard enough to know she’d feel it the next morning, but she recovered quickly, grunting as she wrenched the giant bone fingers off her. She scrambled to her feet and bolted to her discarded longsword. Her haste turned out to be unnecessary, once she picked up her sword and whirled back around, she saw that the construct had not yet moved from its previous position. Instead, its master – back on her feet – was staring at Gideon with utter confusion, mixed in with alarm and possible concern.

Ah. Yes. Gideon supposed this hadn’t been the reaction the Beast expected from her giant bone monstrosity.

“C’mon, don’t hold out on me now, Fuzzball!” Gideon goaded. It was too late to avoid looking completely insane, so she might as well get some fun out of it.

The Beast sighed and waved a hand. The construct lumbered towards Gideon, swaying like it was in a constant state of drunkenness. Its limbs clacked against each other as it stumbled, and it took a few seconds to right itself enough to take a swing at her. Clearly the Beast had not expected to actually have to fight with this thing. Gideon dodged the strike with ease and delivered one of her own to its shin. It was about as effective as hitting a tree; the blade bounced off the bone, only managing to chip off a handful of shards. Dodging another clumsy blow, Gideon tried a different tactic. She surged forward, ducking beneath the construct’s torso and driving the tip of her sword into the back of its knee. Using the blade as lever, she dislocated the joint with a gross, popping sound, before dashing clear of the toppling monstrosity. It caught itself on one of its lower hands, but it clearly wouldn’t be walking again. Still, it hadn’t given up yet, its sword arms were still perfectly intact.

The rest of the fight wasn’t a challenge of skill, but sheer strength. It moved to clumsily to pose much of a real threat, but it took a fair bit of effort to keep the bone blades off her while she worked to dismantle it. Still, after many years of training under Aiglamene, and a few sparring with the formidable Sixth House cavalier, it was only a matter of time before she’d ripped all its limbs off. The separated pieces wriggled on the floor for a few seconds, then fell limp and dissolved back into bone chips.

In the quiet that followed, Gideon heard heavy breathing to match her own. Startled, she turned back to look at the only other person in the room. The Beast had dropped to one knee at some point during the fight and had now lowered her head so Gideon couldn’t see her face. What she could see was blood dripping from her nose at an alarming rate, enough to form a puddle at her feet.

“Shit!” Gideon ran to her side immediately, heart in her throat. She fell to her knees and her hands hovered uselessly near the Beast’s shoulders. _Do I… help her up? Is it weird if I touch her? But it’s weirder if I just do nothing, right?_ Biting the bullet, Gideon placed a hand on a furry shoulder and blurted: “you ok?”

The Beast coughed and spat yet more blood onto the floor. Then she surprised Gideon with a quiet, exhausted laugh. As she lifted her head, Gideon could see that while her body was tired, her eyes were alight.

“You… seem a little worn out, Griddle. I’ll call it a draw if you will.”

Gideon’s laugh was far louder than the Beast’s, and all she could do was nod in response. Once she’d composed herself, she stood and offered her hand to the necromancer. “How could I refuse such a generous offer?”

The Beast allowed herself to be hauled to her feet and didn’t protest when Gideon pulled one of her arms around her shoulders. Gideon felt a twinge of guilt; maybe she shouldn’t have asked her to use such a large and unwieldy construct in battle. But then again, from that laugh, she suspected that both of them thought it was worth it.

“So, what do you think?” Gideon said as she dragged them both along. “Prime cav material, huh?”

“Hmm. You may be a match for Nonius himself.” Gideon felt the heat rush to her face, before the Beast continued. “But you still haven’t beaten me yet, so tough luck.”

“Oh, come on! The hell kinda entry requirements do you have?!”

The Beast simply laughed at her some more, which did nothing to alleviate her furious blush. It was just as well the Beast lacked the energy to lift her head and see it. Not that Gideon was feeling much better herself, now that the adrenaline had worn off, she was starting to feel that rough landing from the start of the fight. And it would only feel worse in the morning. And she still had to make dinner. And she should probably clean up the blood on the ballroom floor, and take a shower, and...

In the face of all these tasks, the only thing to do was take a nap. Gideon and the semi-conscious Beast made their way to the library and its comfortable furniture. The Beast fell asleep the second Gideon placed her on the couch, mumbling wordlessly as Gideon wiped the blood from her nose with a hanky. That taken care of, Gideon kicked off her boots and flopped gracelessly onto the other couch. She was normally never one to sleep during the day, but she was tired, it was warm, and the Beast’s quiet sleep-talking was relaxing to listen to. Gideon drifted off to a series of incoherent murmuring with the occasional word peppered in.

“…Ninth… Erased…”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, the reason this is so late is because of who I am as a person.

While Gideon spent the majority of her time hanging around the Beast, hunting was something she couldn’t join in on. Not that she hadn’t tried to observe at first, but the Beast had promptly chased her and her “big, stompy boots” away. So, Gideon was always left to entertain herself.

What made this time unusual was that Gideon had decided to check out the library, finally moving beyond the cozy sitting area to the multitude of shelves deeper in. They seemed to be organized by subject, so fortunately she only had to look at one book to know what the shelf was about. Unsurprisingly, most of them were about necromancy, and therefore useless to Gideon. The history books held her attention for a while, but most of it was nothing Palamedes Sextus hadn’t already bored her to tears with.

After abandoning the history books, she noticed a bookcase that differed from the others; slightly dustier and hidden away in a dark corner. As if it wasn’t meant to be seen. Engraved at the top of it was the same jawless skull she had seen on the entrance to the crypt, but this one had a perfectly visible forehead, upon which a number was carved: IX.

Now that this was the most interesting library visit Gideon had had (admittedly, out of two), she eagerly grabbed the first book off the shelf. It was black, which was to be expected at this point, with that same skull symbol stuck to front, which felt disturbingly like a sliver of real bone. It lacked a title, or author, or any writing on it at all, which was entirely unhelpful. Unhelpful soon became bizarre when she opened the book to find it completely blank. Not a word in sight. Flicking through another few books revealed more of the same; an entire bookcase filled with exactly jack shit.

Well, jack shit and a whole lot of bookmarks. Which didn’t seem to be utterly featureless like the books, so Gideon immediately plucked them out and dumped them on the floor to paw through. There were fancy ones with shiny tassels, more plain ones with just that skull symbol, and random scraps of paper, presumably from when the bookmarks ran out. The latter were definitely the most interesting, as they had _words_. Or fragments of them anyway, some of which looked kind of similar to each other.

So, naturally, Gideon spent the next 15 minutes piecing together strips of paper like a kid with a very low budget puzzle. The solution turned out to be two full pages. The first was completely indecipherable to Gideon, filled with technical terms that looked like something Palamedes would have talked about when she wasn’t listening, along with various sketches of bones. The second made much more sense to her, probably because the person writing on it was clearly a child.

The paper was a mix of shaky doodles and shakier writing. The doodles seemed to be bone themed, with the half-skull symbol making more than a few appearances. The writing was all just attempts at what looked like a name. The increasingly frustrated scribbles suggested the author shouldn’t have used a pen.

_Haro_

_Harrowhawk_

_Harrowhark None_

_Harrowhark Nonagis_

_Harrowhark Nonagesmus_

_Harrowhark Nonagesimus_

Honestly, Gideon couldn’t fault the kid, she probably couldn’t spell that at age 18. _Fucking hell_. That was the most extra name she’d ever heard. Also, aside from some dead guy, the only name she’d heard since arriving here. Which possibly might have something to do with the only person she’d met since arriving here.

The more she looked at it, the more it fit. The fact that a child could spell out that name at all had to mean they were smart, and she’d already figured out the Beast was a huge nerd. Plus, the paper didn’t look that old. All the handwritten stuff she’d seen growing up was old as balls and all yellowed.

All this brought Gideon back to the question she’d been ignoring since her first day here. Why had the Beast- why had _Harrowhark_ \- not wanted to reveal her name? It’s not like Gideon recognized it. It wasn’t an embarrassing name either, even if it was extra.  
“Harrowhark Nonagesimus…” Gideon muttered under her breath, sounding it out until it felt right. It took more attempts than she was willing to admit, and even then she had no idea if she was saying it right. Then again, the easiest way to find out the right way to be to ask the girl in question.

Name aside, Gideon also had questions about that ever-present skull symbol. Despite what the majority of people in her life had told her, she wasn’t stupid. She knew how to count. She also knew that skulls were used as symbols of the major necromantic houses, and that there were eight of them in total. At least, as far as the rest of the world knew.

From her spot on the floor, Gideon looked back at the shelf behind her. She never had much interest in the necromantic houses (being friends with the Sixth didn’t count), but a secret nerco house was another matter entirely. From this new perspective, she could see a slightly different looking book. It was far thinner than the others, but what really made it stand out was that it was wedged on its side between the other books and the shelf above them. It would be entirely invisible to anyone standing or walking by the bookcase.

Gideon had barely raised her hand towards the book when the quiet was shattered by a terrifying snarl.

Time seemed to slow down as she turned to register the sight behind her. It was almost nostalgic, seeing the black blur lunge towards her, claws and teeth on full display. The eyes, however, were completely different from last time. The pupils were narrower and smaller than she’d ever seen them, and the calculated intelligence that had given Gideon pause that night was absent, replaced with feral desperation.

This time, Gideon felt truly afraid. 

Her fears turned out to be unfounded, however, when the Beast sailed right past her without a second glance and slashed into the bookcase itself, damn near breaking the thing in half. How someone so scrawny could gouge through multiple shelves in one swing, Gideon had no idea.

A moment passed where the Beast’s gaze stayed locked on the ruined shelves, breathing heavily as her fur began to un-puff itself. Then, as if just remembering she wasn’t alone, she turned to look at Gideon.  
Gideon had instinctively launched herself backwards and was now propped up on one elbow, while the opposite hand had snapped up to somewhere behind her shoulder, reaching for a sword that wasn’t there. Her eyes were wide, her mouth was open, and she was pretty sure she was shaking slightly.

Taking in this sight, the Beast went rigid. Her eyes flicked briefly down at her hands, then the ruined shelf, then back to Gideon again. Her eyes were no longer crazed, instead she looked even more scared than Gideon had felt just seconds ago. She wasn’t even breathing.

The two stared at each other a while longer; one starting to calm down and the other growing more and more distressed. A small, choked sound emerged from the Beast’s throat, apparently of its own accord, and that seemed to break the spell. She scrambled back up onto all fours and bolted out of the room so fast she left scratch marks in the floor.

Gideon didn’t recover quite so quickly. She only realised how long she’d been stuck in that pose when her mouth started to feel dry. Finally snapping out of it, she managed to sit up and process what had just happened. Leaning against what was left of the bookcase would only result in splinters, so she ambled over to the sitting area and flopped into an armchair.

Logically, she knew that there was no way she could have known that part of the library was off limits. Somehow, it didn’t make her feel any less of an arsehole. But even that probably paled to how the Beast was feeling. The naked guilt on her face made Gideon’s chest hurt to think about, made her want to run after her and do… something? Gideon didn’t know how to comfort people. Gideon barely knew how to _interact_ with people; the only people remotely interested in talking to her were her grizzled old mentor, a man who couldn’t go five minutes without reciting unnecessarily complex poetry, and the Nerd House representatives. She’d never had to provide emotional support for any of them. They either didn’t need it or had better options.

But the Beast didn’t fall under either of those categories, so Gideon was going to have to get her shit together and figure it out. First, though, she had to find her.

Determined, Gideon stood up and walked out of the library, beginning her search. Surely the Beast wouldn’t avoid her forever, right?


	6. Chapter 6

The Beast had avoided her for an entire day.

Gideon had eaten yesterday’s dinner and today’s three meals alone, and she wasn’t hopeful that would change any time soon. Her only comfort was that there was food missing from the kitchen, so at least her elusive companion had eaten something. She briefly entertained the idea of staking out the kitchen, but she wouldn’t put it past the Beast to go hungry out of sheer stubbornness.

Or, more likely, she wasn’t even getting the food herself. While the Beast was nowhere to be seen, her skeletons carried on like nothing happened. Watching all these ancient, creaking bones shuffle around, generally ignoring her existence reminded Gideon way too much of Drearburh, but at least Crux wasn’t here. They even entertained her for a while, as she released her inner bastard and harassed them while they were doing their jobs.

The skeletons were admittedly very impressive. They walked around obstacles (Gideon) with no problem, and they quickly registered when things were out of place (when Gideon knocked them onto the floor) and put them back. The only thing that seemed to give them pause was when Gideon flat-out stole things from them, then they just kind of stood there, staring (somehow) at the item in Gideon’s hands. If she held onto it long enough, other skeletons would finish their tasks and join in, stuck on the one job they couldn’t complete. Which was hilarious but also made her feel bad. She wondered if a younger Beast (before the whole Beast thing) had done something similar as a kid. Knowing her, she’d probably do it to _study them_ , or _test their capabilities_ or some other nerd shit. Gideon wasn’t sure which was harder: picturing the Beast as a human or imagining a point when she didn’t know absolutely everything there was to know about bones and necromancy.

One thing the skeletons hadn’t seemed to adapt to was the mess in the library. Gideon had only been back once in her search for the Beast, but she’d coincidentally shown up while it was being cleaned. The skeletons dutifully dusted the bookshelves, even taking the books out for a full clean, but the broken shelf in the back was completely ignored. It was covered in fragments of wood and paper that would have been swept up immediately anywhere else in the building, but as far as the skeletons were concerned, that area didn’t exist. Clearly, the Beast had not been back to the library either, because she surely would gotten rid of the books she didn’t want Gideon to see.

Eventually, Gideon gave up the search. Besides, she already had a pretty good idea of where the Beast was spending most of her time. Her room was still off limits to Gideon unless she wanted to kick the door down (which would just be rude). Also, even when she did leave, her hearing was sharp enough that dodging Gideon would be easy. So, there was really was fuck-all Gideon could do except mope around the house, hoping she looked sad enough for the Beast to take pity and finally talk to her.  
Currently, Gideon was sprawled out on the floor in the ballroom next to her two-hander. A good workout was usually enough to make her feel better, or at least less bored, but now all she could think of was how less satisfying this was alone. The Beast had spoiled her with mobs of skeletons and giant bone monstrosities and now nothing else could stack up.

She sighed theatrically for at least the 14th time that day, partly from exasperation and party hoping the Beast would hear it and feel bad. Except not really, because the Beast feeling bad was the entire problem right now. And that she was literally impossible to find if she didn’t want to be found.

Gideon dragged herself up into a sitting position and glanced at the door. The longer this went on for, the more tempted she was to go back to the library and investigate that mysterious book again. Sure, it was in pieces now, but she could probably get something readable out of it. If she tried to. Which she absolutely _would not do_. No matter how much the bloody thing taunted her in the back of her head.

Hauling herself to her feet and scooping up her sword, she decided to clean up and call it a day.

One trip to the bathroom later, Gideon was back in her room. It was about time for bed, but she was feeling restless and her sword could probably use some attention.

She had barely sat down when she felt something clench around her wrist. On instinct, she leapt back to her feet and whirled around, sword still in hand, only to remember she was alone in the room. She felt the sensation again and looked down at her arm, and the bone bracelet gripping it.

_Oh yeah. This thing._

The bracelet shuddered sporadically, and now that Gideon was paying attention, she could hear the faint rattling of bones around the room. _Of course there were bones in here, there were bones fucking everywhere in this house. Hang on, why the fuck were the bones MOVING?_

Anxiety pooled in Gideon’s gut, driving her out into the hallway and in front of the Beast’s door. Pressing the side of her head against it, she could hear thrashing, whimpering and frantic breathing. Anxiety blossomed into full, choking panic, freezing her insides and removing her ability to speak.

Gideon bashed her fists against the door as loudly as she could. No response. She tried the doorknob. Locked. Snarling in frustration, she threw herself against the door, the aging wood starting to crack and splinter. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew her shoulder would ache like a bitch tomorrow, but for now the pain was drowned out by adrenaline. This time she got a running start, slamming her full weight into the door and knocking the entire thing off its hinges.

The room was dark, but moonlight filtered in through a gap in the curtains, enough for Gideon to at least see the basic shapes of things. Although the first thing that hit her was the smell- the metallic scent of blood. She dropped her blade to the floor with a loud clang (something which future Gideon would be utterly horrified about) and stumbled, dizzy from fear, towards the Beast’s bed.

It was immediately apparent that the ‘attacker’ in the room was the Beast herself. The light reflected brightly off her claws and the fur on her torso, shiny and slick with her own blood. She scratched wildly at her chest like she was trying to completely claw herself open, clearly stuck in some horrible nightmare.

Gideon grabbed her wrists and tried to pull them away from her chest, but this only made her thrash harder, somehow more terrified than before. Once again that scrawny body proved capable of surprising strength, and Gideon struggled to hold her still. Desperate, Gideon did the only thing she could think of and threw her arms around her, blocking the Beast from hurting herself anymore with her own body.

The Beast froze, finally responding to something outside of her own head. Belatedly, Gideon realised that putting herself directly beneath the Beast’s claws might have been a bad idea, but it was too late to back off now. Gideon winced as she felt the claws rip through her shirt and brush against her skin, only to sigh in relief when they simply curled against her back, gripping the fabric.

The Beast let out a small, broken whine against Gideon’s neck and any hesitation she had left vanished. Gideon gently rolled them both over onto their sides so she wouldn’t squish her, then wrapped her arms around the Beast fully. Fortunately lacking in blood, the fur on her back was somewhat coarse, but still felt nice to pet. Gideon moved her other hand up to where the Beast’s neck met her skull, where the fur was softer, and scratched lightly.

The Beast had stopped flailing and whimpering when Gideon had hugged her, but now she finally began to relax. She loosened her grip on Gideon’s shirt (which, by the way, was absolutely ruined) and nestled closer, tangling their legs together. Gideon herself was starting to calm down too, causing her brain to turn back on.

 _Fuck. Oh fuck_. The Beast would never allow this if she were conscious. The Beast didn’t even want to _talk_ to her right now, let alone touch her. Gideon lifted her arms away, but the soft sound that escaped the Beast’s throat and the tightening of her arms squashed any thought of sneaking away. Returning to gentle petting, Gideon resigned herself to an awkward conversation in the morning. At least they’d actually _have_ a conversation. It’s not like she could have ignored the situation and gone back to bed anyway, not when every scrap of bone in the building was screaming at her that something was wrong. Not when the Beast was covered in blood and crying out. No, she’d apologize the breach in privacy (and the door), but she wouldn’t regret trying to help.

For now, she may as well get some sleep. The entire front of her torso was uncomfortably wet, and she was really starting to feel the ache in her shoulder, but other than that, it was pretty cozy. The night was warm enough that she didn’t mind the lack of a blanket, and the Beast gave off a surprising amount of heat for someone so small. And while her body was pretty much composed of right-angles, her fur made for some decent padding.

Gideon’s eyes drifted closed and she lowered her head against the Beast’s. An ear twitched at the contact, but there was no other reaction. The scent of fur was a nice improvement over blood and dust. Maybe it was just exhaustion after a stressful situation, but Gideon felt sleep approaching much faster than usual. Warm and comfortable, with no desire to fight it, she drifted off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep feeling like I'm rushing this whole thing but damn it I want these emotionally stunted idiots to be _happy_ for once in their lives. Or at least less sad.


	7. Chapter 7

Gideon awoke to comfortable warmth and a deep rumbling sensation. It was close enough to _feel_ more than hear, and soothingly familiar…

Purring. This was purring.

As she cracked an eye open, Gideon started to remember the previous night’s events. She was in the Beast’s bed. With the Beast herself. Who was _purring._

_Oh no. That’s fucking cute._

Back when Gideon was way younger, before the more reasonable people moved away from Drearburh to live somewhere less shit, there had been a few pet cats around the village. They were cautious of her most of the time (Aiglamene said she was too loud for them), but when they did cozy up to her, that happy purring sound was enough to keep her still and quiet for hours.

Her current reaction was pretty much the same. This was the most content she had ever seen the Beast and there was no way she was going to spoil that. Slowly, Gideon shifted her hand from its place behind the Beast’s neck up to the back of her head. When there was no reaction, Gideon indulged in something she’d secretly wanted to do for a while now; touching the Beast’s ears. They twitched at the first touch, making Gideon freeze. But the Beast continued to sleep soundly, so she reached out again. As expected, they were incredibly soft, and they were somehow even warmer than the rest of her. As she stroked them, the Beast’s purring grew louder, resonating through Gideon’s entire body.

Gideon could have quite happily dozed there, running her fingers through soft fur, but now that it was morning, she could see her surroundings. Like her own room, it was large, grand and old. Unlike her room, however, it was trashed to hell. Given how she apparently slept, the state of the Beast’s bed wasn’t too surprising, but the rest of the room was equally fucked. None of the furniture was undamaged, claw marks were everywhere, (even the walls) and she was certain the dusting skeletons had never ventured in here. Gideon was… _concerned. Damn bitch, you live like this?_

As if she’d somehow heard Gideon’s thoughts, the Beast started to stir, mumbling sleepily into Gideon’s neck. Then she went rigid.

 _Ok, she’s awake._ “Uh…” Before Gideon could get more than one syllable out, the Beast _launched_ herself off her, backing up to the foot of the bed in a wide-eyed panic. Her gaze darted rapidly between her own hands and a bloodstained Gideon, who quickly realised how this looked.

“Woah, wait, hang on-“ The Beast, not listening, scrambled off the bed. Gideon barely managed to grab her wrist before she could run off again. “It’s not mine!” The Beast didn’t seem to hear her. Desperate, Gideon did the only thing that came to mind, and yanked her shirt over her head. “I’m ok!”

This, finally, got the Beast’s attention. Possibly too much attention; she’d stopped moving entirely, transfixed by Gideon’s torso (understandable, really). At least her bandeau was still on.

Gideon tried talking again. “See? I’m fine. The blood’s yours.” _Which is frankly still alarming as fuck, but we’ll deal with that later._

The Beast’s shoulders relaxed slightly. “I- I didn’t…” the Beast rasped out.

“You didn’t hurt me.”

The tension in the Beast’s body vanished as she let out a long, shaky sigh. A few moments of silence passed, before she collected herself enough to ask; “why are you here?” Her voice was quiet and directed at the floor.

“Well I figured something was wrong when all the bones started shaking. And then it sounded like a fight was going on in here so I…” Gideon glanced at what remained of the bedroom door. “… Came in. To check on you. You were having some kind of nightmare and you were scratching yourself and there was blood everywhere and I know you’ve been trying to avoid me but I couldn’t just _leave_ and –“ Gideon took a much needed breath “- well, I… stayed.” _And cuddled you._

To Gideon’s surprise, the Beast didn’t bring that part up. Instead, she finally looked her in the eye. “Are you an idiot or something?” she asked flatly. When Gideon just blinked at her, not sure whether to be confused or insulted, she continued. “I’ve made it abundantly clear how dangerous I am when I lose control, yet you chose to approach me while I’m both crazed and _unconscious_. What possible reason could you have had to think that would end well for you?”

To be honest, Gideon hadn’t been doing much thinking at all last night, but that probably wasn’t the right answer. “Well, why would I think it wouldn’t?” Before the Beast could interject with the multitude of reasons it wouldn’t, Gideon hurried on. “I mean, it’s not like you’ve actually hurt me. Even when all you did was scare me a little back in the library, you looked so damn _guilty_ I wondered if that bookcase secretly had a family. So no, I’m not particularly scared of you. If you had it in you to kill me, I would’ve died on the first night.”

“You…” The Beast looked utterly confused. “How can you still think that after reading that book in the library?”

“Uh. Because I didn’t? You broke it into bits, remember?”

“Are you telling me you didn’t even look at the pieces? After the way I acted?”

“I kinda got the impression you didn’t want me to do that.”

The Beast stared blankly at a spot on the floor, apparently struggling with this entire situation. “Has anyone ever told you you have zero regard for your own safety?”

“I don’t think I wanna hear that from you.”

“Fair.” The Beast looked tired. “I… suppose I owe you an explanation.” She looked up at Gideon and paused. “Perhaps after you put a shirt on.”

 _Oh. I forgot about that_. “Yeah. I’ll do that.” Gideon picked her ruined shirt off the floor and pulled it back on over her head. It was even less comfortable than before, the short time of the floor had left it cold, which was a thoroughly unpleasant thing to combine with the damp stickiness of blood.

For her part, the Beast looked as grossed out as Gideon felt. “That’s not what I- you know what? It’s fine. Just… follow me.” With that, she turned and left the room.

After a very short walk, they were standing in front of the only other looked door in the house, with the Beast staring at it like she would very much like it to disintegrate into dust. She heaved out a sigh and placed her hand on the door. There was a cracking sound, followed by rattling as fragments of bone fell out of the keyhole. At this point Gideon wasn’t even surprised at the use of bones for something as mundane as _locking a door_ , so she kept her mouth shut. The door creaked as the Beast pushed it open, so loudly that Gideon half expected it to snap in half from the strain.

Upon stepping into the room, Gideon was glad she hadn’t bothered to clean herself up. She was certain no one had been in here for years except spiders, who had absolutely gone to town on the place. The cobwebs were even more visible from the dust coating them, as it did everything else in the room. And probably her, in the few minutes. Her only consolation was watching the Beast’s ears flick every time they brushed a web; it was both amusing and cute enough to tolerate the inevitable dust in her lungs. Because holy fuck was it dusty.

The Beast pulled the curtains open, letting light into the room and dust into her nostrils, and immediately broke out into a coughing fit. Ever the gentlewoman, Gideon walked over, opened the window, and heartily thumped the Beast on the back. She almost knocked her over, but she assumed it was the thought that counted.

Once the coughing had subsided, Gideon spoke up. “So this place is… nice...”

“It’s terrible.”

“Ok yeah, it’s a health hazard.”

“Ugh. The room’s not important.” The Beast started rummaging through drawers. “I never thought I’d have a reason to enter it again.”

As her companion searched and muttered, Gideon’s attention was caught by a large painting. It was apparently a family portrait, the most depressing one Gideon had ever seen. Which admittedly wasn’t a high number, but even if she had seen more, she figured this one would still be pretty tragic. All three figures were dressed in black (with bone accessories) and wore skull face paint, but she didn’t give parents much thought, focusing instead on the child in between them. Growing up, Gideon had never had a reference for what a kid should look like, aside from her own reflection, so the child’s age was hard to tell. She guessed maybe six? At any rate, the girl was very small and very pointy looking. Her short black hair did nothing to hide her sharp features, although there wasn’t a scrap of skin exposed. Her eyes were the same colour as her pupils, staring out of a face that refused to convey any kind of emotion.

While Gideon had been staring, the Beast had found what she was looking for, clutching a small book as she stepped next to her. Her expression mirrored that of the child, although her flattened ears betrayed her.

Gideon broke the silence. “This is you, right?”

“Yes.” Her words came out slow, and full of disdain. “My parents: The Reverend Mother Pelleamena Novenarius and the Reverend Father Priamhark Noniusvianus. As for myself…” She took a breath. “The Reverend Daughter Harrowhark Nonagesimus. The last remaining member of the House of the Ninth.”

Harrowhark paused, her tail lashing in agitation. When Gideon didn’t interject, she continued. “The Ninth House has been slowly dying for years now. First, we could no longer afford grand functions like the other Houses, then we couldn’t afford to pay servants, and eventually the House dwindled down to nothing but the main family. By the time I was born, we lacked in the influence to even acquire a cavalier. At that point, we barely qualified as a House anymore. What’s more, my parents were both necromancers, making if extremely difficult for them to have children. They feared the Ninth House would end with them. So instead they committed an atrocity.”

Harrowhark opened the book in her hands, revealing flowing handwriting, the kind you had to concentrate extra hard to read. “My mother kept a journal. I looked through it once before shutting off this room. It details her entire plan to ‘save’ the Ninth House.” Her tone radiated disgust. “Her and my father decided the only way was to produce a powerful necromantic heir to revitalize their dying legacy. The only way to guarantee that was power. A lot of power.” Her grip tightened on the book, claws digging slightly into the leather. “Griddle… how long ago was that ‘incident’ in Drearburh?”

There was only one incident she could be talking about. “A little under eighteen years ago…” _Oh no. Oh FUCK no._

Her dawning horror must have shown, because Harrowhark quickly averted her gaze to the floor. “Two hundred children, all dying at the same moment, produced an incredible amount of thanergy.” Her voice was small, defeated. “That book in the library, the one I should have destroyed years ago, it provided the method. A ritual for my parents to complete. Then, my conception.”

Gideon’s guts were churning. She couldn’t even speak; her brain was just an endless loop of _what the FUCK._

“Their plan worked. They got away with it for almost a decade.” Harrowhark sped up, now that the worst (hopefully) part was over. “Then someone very powerful found out, killed everyone here except myself, cursed me to live as a beast, and erased the Ninth House from history entirely. Every written record, every memory of the Ninth was gone in an instant.” She exhaled, finally able to look at Gideon. Her ears, her shoulders, her tail, every part of her was slumped with exhaustion. “So, now you know.”

All of this was incredibly difficult for Gideon to process, but something didn’t quite add up. “Hang on. You said they killed every kid in Drearburh, but I was there too. Why spare me?”

“I… I don’t think they did.” Harrowhark flicked through the journal. “There’s nothing in here about leaving anyone out, nor was there an exact number of deaths required. Whatever happened with you wasn’t part of their plan.”

Another mindfuck for the ever-growing pile. “Fucking hell. I don’t even know what to _say_ to all this.”

Harrowhark swallowed, hard, and turned her back to Gideon, hands clenched and shoulder’s stiff. “If you wish to strike me down now, go for it. But if not…” The bone bracelet that had been clamped around Gideon’s wrist since she got here released and fell to the floor, morphing back into a fingerbone in time to hit the wood with a sharp clack. For such a small piece of bone, the sound seemed deafening in the quiet, tense atmosphere. “I will not keep you here any longer. You’re free to go.”

When Harrowhark’s voice hitched on the last word, Gideon understood why she had turned away. She had told her entire horrible story with a deliberate lack of emotion, but it was the thought of being alone again that made her hands tremble, made her unable to control her face. It was just so… sad.

Gideon stepped closer and Harrowhark flinched, bracing herself to die in the decrepit remains of the Ninth House. Which was probably why she couldn’t contain a squeak of surprise when Gideon wrapped her arms around her instead.

Harrowhark took a few seconds to remember how to breathe. “What-“ she managed to choke out.

“That was definitely the most fucked up story I’ve ever heard in my life,” Gideon murmured against the top of Harrowhark’s head. “Here’s the thing though, you didn’t actually _do_ any of it.”

“I lied to you.” Harrowhark was shivering now. “I knew, from the first day. I was the reason you grew up alone. They all died for me, and you almost joined them.” Her composure had vanished, giving way to raw desperation. “I _knew_ , and I still kept you here, let you believe I wasn’t a fucking _war crime-“_

Gideon spun her around in her arms, holding her close so she could stoke her back in an attempt to comfort. “You weren’t even _born_ when any of this happened. Your shitty parents are the ones to blame.” Before Harrowhark could retort, Gideon pulled back slightly to look her directly in the eyes. “I was almost one of those dead kids, and I’m saying it’s not your fault. I’m not going to ditch you over something like that.”

If she wasn’t before, Harrowhark was definitely crying now (and maybe Gideon was a little too). “Griddle…”

“Gideon.”

“Huh?”

“You told me yours, after all.” Gideon gave her best attempt at her usual charming grin. “My name is Gideon Nav.”

Harrowhark choked out something between a laugh and a sob, shaking her head. “You’re ridiculous,” she said, before burying her face in Gideon’s chest and finally returning the hug.

 _Again, I don’t think you’re in any position to call me ridiculous._ But Gideon didn’t argue, she just chuckled and squeezed her tighter.

They stayed like that for a good while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a big one! At least, for me it is. Harrow had a lot of explaining to do.  
> Also, one particular section of this I wrote after dusting the space behind my computer after ignoring it for months. Take a wild guess which part.


End file.
